The English actor and American rom-com import Hugh Grant has always been an enigma in plain sight.
Voguerecently spoke over the phone with Grant aboutHeretic.
Ive read that you never cared for watching horror films.
Hugh Grant as Mister Reed in Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’sHeretic, in theaters November 8.
Okay, I admit that I havent seen it.
And the filmNight Train to Venicehas a lot of horror tropes.
In other words, is there something very English about Gothic horror likeHeretic?
Grant with Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East inHeretic
That is a good question.
Is horror, as a genre, primarily British?
Theres Edgar Allan Poe.
Photo: Courtesy A24
And the Japanese are very good at it.
But I think we do like it in Britain.
Maybe its because weve been so proper for so long.
Photo: Kimberley French
Going back to Victorian Gothicwell even before all thatHorace Walpole.
Its beneath the surface, outwardly proper and well-behaved and Christian and yet inwardly twisted and evil and murderous.
I know I am, anyway.
Well, theres the horror of the house, too, that is very British.
Yes, why are homes horrifying?
It doesnt take much.
Every child knows that as he stares into the wardrobe in the corner, unable to sleep.
That friendly wardrobe suddenly becomes deeply sinister.
Did you ever watch the BritishHammer horror filmsor Roman Polanskis early suspense films as a teenager?
I think we did watch [the Hammer films], my brother and I.
Our whole lives revolved around the TV schedule.
Late on Friday, there was what they called the Friday night nudie.
Some poor woman had to go topless.
And we all, as teenagers, waited for that moment.
And I think on Saturday it was theHammer House of Horror.
I think we did like it.
And of course, I know the Polanski films youre referring to.
Heretics locked-door premise often borders on the theatrical with its chamber setting and dense dialogue.
Is there something particular about this kind of theatrical chamber piece that draws you to it?
Lets get outdoors, mix it up, and have big scenes with parties, followed by intimate gatherings.
All the usual tropes of cinema.
You began your career on the stage at Oxfords Dramatic Society and in regional theaters across England.
Chamber films likeBitter MoonandNight Train to Venicealso treaded between theater and film.
Yes, but for different reasons.
I wasnt choosing jobs.
I was just thinking, Oh, yes, I got a job!
Whereas, now, I dont work that much.
Im interested in what you found most compelling about these sordid figures as you researched them.
But its true, I did a lot of research into serial killers and cult leaders.
It was interesting how often there wasnt something.
They were just kind of born that way.
I vacillated a lot on that question.
But Im very vigilant to keep my small contribution to cinema fun and entertaining.
I am always terrified of acting and filmmaking disappearing up its own ass.
That was Ken Russells thing, of course.
Sorry, sir, your trousers have fallen down.
Those are good categories, but I think youll find that the common thread between them is narcissism.
And it does alarm me that Ive played so many narcissists.
Even Mr. Reed is, in his own way, quite charming.
Theres something dashing about him.
I think they very often have great charm.
I have met those kinds of people, and I certainly have Mr. Reed in that category.
I think he would have always initially done well with people.
Even as a kid he would have done quite well.
People would have got his jokes and thought he was good company.
And they gradually shy away, making him even angrier and more disappointed deep down.
That was my cod psychology.
Do you have any particular villains or antagonists from stage or screen history that you most admire?
I do quite admire Oliver Reed.
Ken Russell had good stories about him.
Oliver Reed was one of the least precious actors you ever came across.
He claimed to only have two faces.
I quite admire that.
No one brings danger quite like them.
And De Niro, of course, when hes being a psycho.
Thats sweet of you.
One critic even wrote in the 1990s that you had more tics than Benny Hill.
That was the thing Id be least interested in doing.
I was doing silly voices, silly sketches, unusual characters.
And I was never quite sure how to do that.
The romantic comedies ended with a bump in about 2010.
I made one that was a failure.
Its that moment of getting them that is quite exciting.
With Mr. Reed, I suddenly saw a man in double denim.
That was terribly important to me.
This conversation has been edited and condensed.
